Sheriff's Office arrests four in connection with burglaries

Lowndes County Sheriff Mike Arledge stands in a back room of the sheriff's department Friday afternoon, surrounded by stolen property deputies recovered Thursday. Four people were arrested, and the sheriff's department is working to obtain search warrants for two other people, in connection with a string of recent burglaries. Photo by: Carmen K. Sisson Buy this photo.

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Four people were arrested Thursday in connection with a string of burglaries, and Lowndes County Sheriff Mike Arledge said more arrests are forthcoming. Along with the arrests, deputies recovered thousands of dollars of stolen property.

Deputies recovered between eight and 10 pounds of marijuana -- with an estimated street value of more than $12,000 -- along with $1,300 in cash and stolen property which included guns, big screen TVs and other electronics.

Timothy Ross was charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of stolen property and violation of parole. Marcus Ross was charged with possession of stolen property and possession of a controlled substance. Johnson was charged with possession of stolen property and possession of a controlled substance.

The fourth arrest occurred at 610 18th St. N., where Adrian Lamar Erby, 27, of 819 Waterworks Road, was taken into custody and charged with possession of a weapon by a felon. He will also be charged with possession of a stolen firearm. A number of weapons were found stashed in the walls of the home. Deputies recovered the guns, along with $1,850 in cash, flat screen TVs, and other weapons.

Bonds and a court date have not been set for the four.

The sheriff's office is working to obtain search warrants for Michael Fortune and Alesia Epps, according to the sheriff's office. A press release stated that deputies raided a home in the 1000 block of Ranson Road but found no one on the premises. Recovered items included weapons, ammunition, jewelry and stereo equipment. Other items were partially destroyed in an attempt to hide them, according to the press release.

Arledge said the arrests and stolen property seizures were "pretty big," saying Thursday's triple search warrants, arrests and property seizures made for "a long day, a hard day."

He partially credited tips from the public for leading to the arrests and said he expects to arrest more people for burglaries in the days to come.

The sheriff's office has made 20 burglary or burglary-related arrests in the past 18 days, Arledge said.

"We're going to continue investigating," Arledge said. "We're going to be aggressive, and we're not going to stop until we arrest them all."

"(They) didn't just fall in our laps," he said of Thursday's arrests. "We need everybody's help. We can't do it by ourselves."

The press release stated that more than $20,000 in illegal narcotics have also been seized this week.